Staff Writer
THREE young Capetonians have won medals at a national music competition for their prowess in playing the violin and piano.
Violinist Jordan Brooks, 12, from Fairways won gold, while silver went to pianist Leo Gevisser, 12, from Newlands. Violinist Naomi Fokkens, 13, from Plumstead, took a bronze in the 2015 Southern Music Rights Organisation (Samro) Hubert van der Spuy National Music Competition in Parow.
The competition was organised by the Tygerberg branch of the SA Society of Music Teachers (SASMT) .
There were 60 competitors in the first two rounds and 25 in the third.
The participants were selected following auditions in Pretoria, Bloemfontein, Durban, Port Elizabeth and Cape Town.
They competed over two rounds before being narrowed down to 25 semi-finalists for the third round on Thursday, and eight finalists for the gala concert on Friday night.
The eight finalists were Brooks, pianist Jacqueline Choi, 13, from Durbanville, Fokkens, Gevisser, pianist Leo Huan, 12, from Pretoria, violinist Pendo Masote, 11, from Auckland Park, violinist Rin Matsuki, 11, of Pretoria and violinist Natanja Uys, 13, from Plattekloof.
Uys and her teacher Elzaan Coetzee teamed up for the Tygerberg SASMT Prize for the best achievement by a pupil of the branch.
Samro Foundation executive general manager André le Roux said he believed investing in young talent was “more than just financial”.
“It is one into the future, into the seedlings which often germinate at this competition and blossom at our overseas scholarships, and become music ambassadors we can be proud of. We are also proud that many more South African compositions are being performed,” said Le Roux.
Hilda Boonzaaier, who chairs SASMT Tygerberg and the organising body, said these investments would make South Africans proud in years to come.
Amy Janse, 12, of Bloemfontein, won in the strings development category and the prize for the most promising development candidate overall.
Janse is a pupil of Francois Henkins at the Mangaung String Project, which claimed the prize for the most successful development project.
Boonzaaier said best performance prizes were presented to Brooks (Baroque, first round), Gevisser (Classical, second round) and Brooks (Romantic, third round).
She said special prizes in honour of the late music teacher Leon Hartshorne were presented to Gevisser, as the highest-scoring pupil of a national SASMT member, and his teachers Nina Schuman and Luis Magalhäes.